Lemon Blueberry Cream Cheese Tart with Saffron

This weekend is the Whole Earth Festival in Davis. Walking through the quad, many childhood memories from the Renaissance Fair came flooding back. There was everything from hand made ceramics, overly scented soaps, flower tiaras to glass wind chimes. Finding a shady spot all to myself, I watched from a far as locals start to sprinkle their way in.
Two girls on my right asked a stranger to take their picture, in the middle of a wooden teepee. Behind me a woman was selling hand bound leather booklets. Laying down, I looked up into the little tree providing me a safe heaven from the heat, as the sun sparkled against the brand new leaves.

I wanted to make something that reflected the rich diversity on campus. The lemon cream cheese base of this tart is sweet and savory. A hint of saffron enhances the aroma. The simplicity of the blueberries against the tart lemon tones down the strong savory feel of the cream cheese.

Prep time:10 minutes Total time: 2 1/2 hours
Ingredients:

• 7 oz. sweetened condensed milk
• 5-6 oz cream cheese
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp saffron

Mix together the sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese. Next add the lemon juice and zest. Finally mix in the saffron. I used a traditional pie crust, but a graham cracker or almond crust would be nice.

Bake 350 for 20-25 minutes. Cool for 1-2 hours in fridge. Makes three small tarts.